Fifty international appearances for Romania is nothing to sneeze at. Add a résumé that includes time with Lokomotiv Moscow, and the Chicago Fire’s new midfielder looks like a promising addition. Ravan Cocis maybe 31, and the Fire may be his seventh club in five years, but based on his track record, there’s reason to think he can have an impact.

But as so many MLS clubs have discovered, track record is one thing, actual performance is another. Having spent the last year with Hoverla Ozhhorod near the bottom of the Ukranian Premier League, odds are we won’t see much insight into what Cocis has to offer. Even if we did, the same, timeless question would remain: How will he adjust to Major League Soccer? Until he steps on the field, head coach Frank Yallop’s intuition is our best indicator.

What we do know is the role he’ll be asked to fill. In Chicago’s 4-4-2 formation, Jeff Larentowicz is a lock to play defensive midfield, meaning anybody brought into the middle will be asked to provide the link to forward Mike Magee, playing in support of Quincy Amarikwa.

So far this year, Alex, Benji Joya, Matt Watson and Chris Ritter have had their chance. Now, it’s Cocis’s turn, with Yallop seeing the Romanian as Larentowicz’s attacking complement.

“That’s the spot where he’s most comfortable,” Yallop said. “He’s a bit more attack-minded than Jeff. We’ll hope to get him forward, get in the box and have him finish chances. He likes to get forward and force the play but if we need to, he’s versatile enough to move around as a second forward or out on the wings.”

If Cocis is seen as somebody who can “finish chances,” then his past goal scoring becomes more telling. Unfortunately, that story isn’t a positive one. Whereas the midfielder was scoring around two-in-five at the peak of his career (winning titles in Moldova with Sheriff Tiraspol, eight years ago), his proaction has waned in recent seasons, at higher levels. Since leaving Sheriff, Cocis has 18 goals in 129 games during stops in Russia, Romania, Saudi Arabia and Ukraine.

Production waning? League-and club-level beginning to recede? All while a player’s entering the last phase of his career? It’s not exactly a résumé to get excited about, particularly given the fate of Chicago’s other recent imports. Then again, you could have made similar observations about Seattle’s Gonzalo Pineda. He’s become a great complementary piece of the Sounders.

If Cocis works, the Fire may have what they need to close the four-point game between themselves and fifth place New England. If it doesn’t, fans may be left asking why the team didn’t add depth in attack or defense. Or, why they didn’t target a player who had been producing more at a higher levels.